By Adam Kelliher
If dinosaurs are the rock stars of the fossil world, trilobites are the band everybody's dad actually listens to. The UC Berkeley Museum of Paleontology says trilobites probably rank second only to dinosaurs in fame, and I'd agree. Kids get it instantly. So do grandparents.[1]
What a trilobite was
Trilobites were marine arthropods, so they're distant relatives of today's insects, crabs and spiders. The name means three lobes: a raised middle strip down the back with a lobe on each side. Their hard exoskeleton is what fossilises.[1]
Long run, hard ending
They went extinct about 245 million years ago, by Berkeley's figure, after a run that's hard to beat. They're among the best studied fossil arthropods anywhere.[1]
Eyes made of rock
This is my favourite part. Trilobite eye lenses were made of calcite, the same mineral that makes up limestone. UBC's Beaty Biodiversity Museum has a good short piece on it.[2] When you look at a well prepared trilobite with a loupe, those little bumps on the eye are real mineral lenses.
People have always liked them
At Arcy-sur-Cure in France, archaeologists found a trilobite in a roughly 15,000-year-old settlement that had been drilled to be worn.[1] So collecting them isn't a new hobby.
A buying tip
A lot of the trilobites on the market come from Morocco, and preparation quality varies a lot. Look closely at the shell for filler or paint, and ask the seller how it was prepped. We stock Calymene, Calymene in its nodule and Harpes, all in the fossil collection.
See what's new: browse our newest arrivals for the latest pieces added to the shop.
Sources
- University of California Museum of Paleontology. Introduction to the Trilobita.
- Beaty Biodiversity Museum, UBC. Trilobite eyes have lenses made of calcite.